What American accent do you have?

I have no idea how useful or accurate this test is, but my result confirmed my accent is Canadian. Duh!

Can it recognize regional accents? Give it a try.


What American accent do you have?

I already know regardless of my trying to skew the test I have a Southern accent.

My Canadian origins were identified, too, Rob.
And it said, at the bottom of the test, that "People from outside North America probably think you're from the States, but over here we wouldn't make such a mistake."
Not so true. When I've traveled in the States, I've often been asked what state I'm from ... and seldom asked if I were Canadian.
Also, after writing the test, I wanted to give the exact wording that I quoted five lines above, but I hadn't copied the sentence. So I ripped through the test quickly and this time was told I had a 'Midland' accent, which is supposed to be the most neutral, much sought after by media types.
And checking back, I found I'd inadvertently changed only one answer of the 17 required ... surely proof that the accents are very similar.
That was question 11: Do you say ABOUT and MOUTH with the same vowel sound as LOUD and DOWN? First run through, I said, correctly, that I say them differently (though very similarly). Second run through, I said, incorrectly, that I say them the same.

Northeastern This could either mean an r-less NYC or Providence accent or one from Jersey which doesn't sound the same. (People in Jersey don't call their state "Joisey" in real life)

My real accent is a combination of Kiwi/Ozzie/Received Pronunciation.

What do you mean by 'received pronunciation'?
'Received' where?

Ha! I 'received' it when I received my CELTA - Cambridge University English Language Teaching - Adults Diploma ;)

Yup. Thought so. Tnx.

Well holy shit it nailed mine to the tee. Raised in Indiana and moved to texas but thank God I lived in Indy long enough so that I didnt pick up any speech patterns from the south. Apparently I used to have a northeastern accent before my family moved to Indiana though.

("Midland" is not necessarily the same thing as "Midwest") The default, lowest-common-denominator American accent that newscasters try to imitate. Since it's a neutral accent, just because you have a Midland accent doesn't mean you're from the Midland.

Northern. Right on----Michigan.

I have practically no accent. Having come from Oak Ridge, my friends came from all over the world, so I could choose any accent I wanted. Sounding like a typical east Tennesseean was just too "hicklike" for me to bear. I can't help but associate it with elements of humanity that are unpleasant, though I know this is a prejudice. I have many friends with a rather thick local accent who are the sweetest and smartest people you could want to know.

HEY!!! Another Indiana-to-Texas transplant! I lived in Indiana all my life until last year, but live in San Antonio now.

And here's mine...being from Indiana it's what you would expect:

What American accent do you have? (Best version so far)

Midland
("Midland" is not necessarily the same thing as "Midwest") The default, lowest-common-denominator American accent that newscasters try to imitate. Since it's a neutral accent, just because you have a Midland accent doesn't mean you're from the Midland. http://www.youthink.com/quiz_images/full_428371978.jpg

(although most people think I have a Southern accent. That used to be heavier than it used to be, and now people think I have more of a Midwestern accent)

Midland - lowest common demonimator American accent.

But I'm from out west.

I had a northeast accent. I guess that's pretty accurate I am from Maryland.

How odd, the test indentifies my accent as Midland. A close personal friend from Atlanta, who prides himself in being able to place any American's accent within 100 miles of their hometown, told me the same thing. He travels a lot for business. I always thought I had a default West Coast accent but I guess not; of all the places I've lived in the world, I have only lived in California when in America.

I learned English in Orange County, Southern California starting 1985 and Sesame Street really helped. My diction is rather old-fashioned and proper. Due to previous training in Toastmaster's as well as being an ESL teacher, I don't use much slang. However, growing up trilingual, I am easily influenced by the speech patterns of the people around me.